Sonar

Innovation, transformation, resilience, the commons, systemic… How can one avoid getting lost amidst all these catch-all terms? The world of public innovation is full of vague terms that hold great promise but can also, at times, cause confusion. To help public sector stakeholders navigate these sometimes murky waters more effectively, over a 24-month period we invited a group of public servants to collectively develop a compass – or, more accurately, a sonar – to help them navigate the twists and turns of public innovation.

Sonar’s aim was to answer questions being asked by local authority staff involved in public innovation initiatives: How can I find out what stage my local authority is at in terms of innovation? What forms of innovation are available to us, and how can we combine them depending on the situation? How can we move from ‘ad hoc’ innovation to a process of systemic and gradual change? Where should we start, what are the steps involved, and what pitfalls should we avoid? How can we take this further and transform, right from the outset, the way we design and implement public policies?

Sonar refers both to a mode of production and to a publication. In practical terms, a group of around twenty officials responsible for public innovation came together at the initiative of the 27th Region for a series of four ‘training-research’ sessions between May 2017 and March 2018 in Paris, Nantes and Reims. The sessions alternated between case study presentations, practical exercises, talks and writing workshops. Version 1.0 of Sonar was presented at the France Urbaine meetings in Dijon on 5 April 2018.